After Aleria spoke with the unnamed hunter in the labs, they deduced that it was time for them to take their live. It had been a quiet affair all around for the demon: no muss and no fuss. They had politely checked their collar and cuff bracelet at the 'door' (the lighthouse's portal, someone had explained), and it had been much like leaving your room key at a Haunted Motel during check out. In summation, their trip had been pleasant-- from start to finish. Far more pleasant than they could have dreamed of had it happened even a week ago.

There were lies underfoot, about their kind. Lies that painted them in a bad light, slandering them and all they stood for.

Aleria would believe the falsehoods no longer.

The island had been far too warm for their liking, but they had learned so much from the hunters there. They had offered curious insights into a new life that Aleria had never heard of before, one they had never even considered. A new life that would have a space carved for them, pre-ordained to be someone's second half. There would be no more loneliness, no more sorrow, no more torturous evenings spent alone, nose buried in a book in the darkness of their room.

The hunters would not lie to them. What purpose would it serve? Otto, Mimsy, and the unnamed hunter had all seemed so genuine, interested in their own way. Otto had told them that they would belong somewhere, to someone. The idea of it made their vines mentally unfurl with warmth, relaxed the tenseness in their shoulder and back, and relieved the constant ache of loneliness in their heart. They shrugged back into their coat upon being deposited outside the Haunted House, Eleventh October much chillier than the tropic setting from whence they had come.

Aleria returned to their dorm, pushing open the door with a quiet sigh. The kodama chittered as they always did, their minuscule teeth clacking together as the demon relaxed on their bed, essentially a slab of ice. They laced their slim, bony fingers behind their head, staring up at the ceiling. There was an artificial skylight in it, and they watched the rolling clouds and twinkling stares with an unfocused stare.

Their mind was leagues away.

Could they accept a new future? Was it the same as willingly embracing death? Loss of life was a rare thing in Halloween. At most, someone would fade away after years and years, forgotten by humans, no longer filled with enough fear to remain alive. Murders rarely happened-- Aleria had had to look the word up the first time they'd heard it. Murder was something that happened to minipets, to creatures without enough fear to regenerate and pop up anew in the nearest pumpkin patch. Murder happened to humans, delicate containers of pink insides, whose lifespans were short enough to be almost meaningless anyway.

There were students that had been alive before their cultures had truly formed. What was death, then? What was the passing of time?

With the hunters, Aleria's body would be reforged anew, into something simpler. More elegant. Just because they wouldn't have a body didn't mean that their existence would cease. Aleria reasoned that their sense of self might even be stronger than it was currently, distilled down to a purpose and a partner. The weapons were still conscious creatures, capable of intelligent thought, communication, and logic on many levels. They had an identity: a name, a species, an origin story. Their body would be refined into its purest essence; the parts that would retain their utility, the parts that could be used to hurt or to heal.

Would it be such a bad life?

They drew up a list of pros and cons, drawing one of the nearby kodomas into their lap, patting its head absent-mindedly, disregarding it feeble attempts at struggling.

Pros: Life would become 'more clear', per Fionnghal's words. Increases in power. Lack of isolation. Telepathic communication, which Aleria already knew to be an effective means, given the vines in their own head. A sense of purpose. A place to belong.

Cons: No longer corporeal. Inability to touch anyone, ever again. Technically treason. Technically.

The demon sat up, truly stumped. Was that the only cons they could think of? Surely, there had to be more. They were firmly in favour of making the change, but knew they needed to make the decision with a heavy heart, and with a clear mind. If their own mind was unreliable, then Aleria would need to seek out an outside source and find out their opinion on the situation.

It wouldn't be such a difficult task if Aleria knew anyone else...but they didn't.

They would need to find someone, and so, a new mission was set. It was time for an intelligent debate.